The sources, which we understand today as mountain order and which refer to themselves as order and statute, have been created since the middle of the 15th century. We have to distinguish them from medieval (custom) legal records such as the Trienter Bergordnung (1208), the Goslarer (1271), Iglauer (after 1270) and Freiberger Recht (older mining law after 1307, more recent mining law after 1346). The latter contain (private?) Records of customary mining law and cannot yet be regarded as laws. Only the Ius regale montanorum of King Wenceslas II of Bohemia shows - with strong reference to Roman traditions - the will to legislate. This law, which was probably intended primarily for the Kuttenberg mountain area, became the early forerunner of the early modern mountain regulations issued by the respective regalers for certain areas. The Constituciones et iura montana in Chastune (Gastein Mountain Regulations from 1342) , issued by Archbishop Heinrich von Pirnbrunn , the sovereign of Salzburg, were also a legal statute (for the Prince of Salzburg) regulating the mining industry. The Bavarian legal statutes of Rattenberg from 1463, whose scope extended over the lordships of Kitzbühel, Rattenberg and Kufstein, also belonged to the more important provincial mountain regulations. The scope of mountain regulations could be nationwide. In most cases, however, mountain regulations only applied to small areas if the owner of the mountain shelf was a territorial prince. Mountain regulations could also be restricted to individual mining towns or only to certain minerals . The early mountain orders in particular (e.g. for Schneeberg and Annaberg in Saxony) were only valid for a short time. In the middle of the 19th century , the mountain regulations were replaced by state-wide mining laws . This necessity can be illustrated by the example of Prussia , where, after the territorial gains through the resolutions of the Congress of Vienna of 1815, 50 different mining regulations were in force.
The content of a mountain order essentially consisted of the following parts:
the mining authority with its mining officials ( mountain state )
This included detailed provisions on mining, the sovereign tithe , the establishment of the mining authorities and the privileges of the mining community .
If, for example, an ore prospector thought he had discovered a new deposit (passage), he had to officially secure the prospecting right from the responsible miner. The Schurf proved to be mineable, he appealed to the Mining Authority a presumption one. The miner checked this application through personal inspection, determined the dimensions and location of the pit, to which a plot of land (pit field) belonged as an accessory area. If there were no further suspicions of this vein, the new mine (pit, tunnel) was given a proper name , usually a saint's name , and a fee was charged. With the entry in the loan book, the award was final.
Due to the economic importance of mining for the owner of the Bergregal , which resulted from the tithe , he was very interested in a flourishing mining industry . Nagorno ailments such as flooding of mines, cave-ins due to faulty loss or spillage of programs to prevent, was the object of the mining authorities , the mines to have regularly visit (Befahrung) that continue to teach on any incidents. This form of mountain supervision, in which the mining authority also made decisions about mining, pit expansion (tunneling) , drainage, among other things, is also known as the management principle. In the course of the economic developments in the middle of the 19th century , this paternalism proved to be an obstacle, so that the principle of direction was abolished in the later mining laws and the mining offices were only limited to actual supervisory tasks.
Examples of mountain regulations and mountain privileges
content strongly based on the Annaberg Bergordnung of 1509 (see Saxony); further comprehensive regulation by the Bergordnung of 1619 (remained in force until the Bavarian Mining Act of 1869)
first written record of customary mining rights as privilege A and privilege B; Model for Freiberg mining law (see Saxony ); Basis for the mountain code " Ius regale montanorum " of King Wenceslas II , who reached South America via Italy and Spain
Mountain regulations and mountain freedoms of the Albrecht Duke of Friedland for the mines of Hohenelbe , Starkenberg , Arnau and other mines on his grounds
Recording of local customary law by the Schladming city and mountain judge Leonhard Eggelzain; content influenced by the Trient mountain order; significant for the southern German mining industry
extensive legislation as the core of the early modern Schwaz mining law; was created between 1490 and 1513 in the course of meetings of the Schwaz miners; Mixing of older customary laws and younger sovereign regulations
first draft of a tin regulation for the new Bernsteinschen mines (Altenberg) based on the customary law of tin mining in the area of the Greifensteine (Geyer / Ehrenfriedersdorf); Further tin and mining regulations from 1451, from May 19, 1470, from 1489 (first mention of the name Altenberg), 1491, 1503, 1568 (new tin mining regulations from Elector August , remained in force until the shelf mining law of 1851)
first enactment of a mountain code for Schneeberg; further regulations 1479, 1486, 1487, 1490, 1491, 1492 (first Great Schneeberger Bergordnung), 1497, 1499, 1500 (new Bergordnung for the Schneeberger Revier), 1521
first enactment of mountain regulations for glassworks; further regulations 1491, 1506 (letter of freedom as adoption of the Annaberger Bergordnung), 1545
first enactment of a mountain order for Annaberg; further mountain regulations from 1499, 1503, 1507, 1509, 1542 (mountain regulations for Annaberg and Marienberg ), 1561 (tin regulations)
issued for the mines in Auerbach ; further mountain regulations 1513 (for Oelsnitz , Lauterbach and Schönbrunn), 1517 (Voigtsberg mountain regulations)
first comprehensive mountain regulation in Germany; from 1511 applied to the entire Duchy of Saxony ; Model for further mountain regulations in some European mining areas
Regulations Which […] Mr. Augustus […] Churfuerst […] Jn the guardianship of his […] young cousins of […] Mr. Friderich Wilhelmen and Mr. Johansen Hertzieh zu Sachssen […] to promote the zu Salfeldt and others in jr Fürstlichen Graces Landen Berckwergen has publicized and let go out
Hermann Brassert (ed.): Mountain orders of the Prussian lands. Cologne 1858 ( digitalis.uni-koeln.de )
Hubert Ermisch: The Saxon mining law of the Middle Ages. Giesecke & Devrient, Leipzig 1887 ( archive.org )
Franz Johann Friedrich Meyer: Attempt of a history of the mining constitution and the mining rights of the Harz in the Middle Ages. Eisenach 1817 ( books.google.de )
Thomas von Wagner: About the Chursächsische mining constitution. Leipzig 1787 ( books.google.de )
Origin and orders of the Bergwerge in the Kingdom of Böheim Churfurstenthum Sachsen Ertzhertzogthum Osterreich Fürstenthumb Braunschweig vnd Luneburgk Graffschaffen Hohenstein in part until hero never went out in print everything with vleis brought together and what in each dealt can be found on the following sheet . In presentation by Henning Grossen dess Jüngern, Leiptzigk 1616 ( hathitrust.org ).